The very best from the world of smooth jazz and classic soul.

December 31, 2015

Here we are at the end of another contemporary jazz year and despite it being another good twelve months for new music the phenomenon that is the smooth jazz cover continues unchecked. No doubt it has a unique place within the genre and although being regarded as both a blessing and a curse, it has now pushed beyond the familiar territory of vintage soul to take in a wider spectrum of popular music. There is no doubt that the cover version is here to stay so, looking back on what this year has delivered, here is my very personal top ten Smooth Jazz Therapy covers of 2015.

‘Tribute – Right On’ by DW3 from the CD ‘Vintage Truth’. This stunning, brass enriched, take on the Pasadenas 1988 smash proved to be a perfect fit with the rapidly emerging DW3.

‘Going In Circles’ by Greg Adams & East Bay Soul from the album ‘That’s Life’. Darryl Walker’s ultra soulful tones were front back and center of this sensational spin on the Friends Of Distinction 1969 chart-topper.

‘Higher And Higher’ by Dave Koz, from his 25th anniversary collection, ‘DK25’. What makes a great smooth jazz ‘cover version’ is a question asked by fans of the genre the world over. But, when you get right down to it, a classic soul tune from the 60’s or 70’s, performed by some of the finest musicians that contemporary jazz has to offer, will invariably get the job done and this is just what happened here as Koz, teamed with Kenny Lattimore on vocals and Rick Braun on trumpet and flugelhorn, delivered a real gem.

Read on for the remainder of this year’s top ten covers. If you have your own list of favorite covers from 2015 why not e-mail it to me at denis.poole@yahoo.com. Happy New Year!!

December 29, 2015

A side-man of some note, saxophonist Sam Riney enjoyed his own time in the spotlight from 1988 to 1991 when he released albums such as the 1988 ‘Spindletop’, ‘Playing With Fire’ that followed two years later and ‘Talk To Me’ from which comes this fine track ‘Seduction’.

It is a recording that typifies Riney’s sensual smooth jazz sound and is indicative of the fabulous music that was around in those halcyon days of jazz-fusion.

December 27, 2015

Released in 2007, ‘Daisy’, by the hugely underrated Brian O’Neal, was not only his sophomore project but also replete with the easy grooving attitude that helps him stand out from the crowd. The album’s best track is arguably the sumptuous ‘Let Me Do It Again’ but, truth to tell, this particular accolade could just as easily go to several other of the twelve all original compositions.

December 25, 2015

Seasonal greetings from Smooth Jazz Therapy and thanks a million to the publicists, the record companies and of course the artists, both established and up and coming, who over the last twelve months have made their music so generously available. It’s been a good year and because the love of music is all about preference mixed with individual taste here are my own personal highlights of the year. In other words and in no particular order, my Smooth Jazz Therapy Top Twenty Tracks of 2015.

‘Sky Watcher’ by Brian Simpson from the CD ‘Out Of A Dream’. This groove drenched cut, co-written by Simpson and Ryan Farish, promptly blasted its way up the charts of most played on smooth jazz radio and in so doing got the contemporary jazz year off to a wonderful start.

‘Keep It Movin’ by Maysa from the CD ‘Back 2 Love’. Produced by Mint Condition's lead singer –producer - songwriter Stokley (who also contributed on vocals) this urban gem lifted the spirits and restored faith in a genre that excels when at its edgy best.

‘Point Of Departure’ by Nelson Rangell from his brand new album ‘Red’. Rangell has always been one of my favorite saxophonists so when he released not one but two albums in 2015 this was cause for considerable excitement. ‘Red’ was joined by ‘Blue’ with ‘Point Of Departure’ (from ‘Red’) being synonymous with the fiery playing for which Rangell is famous.

‘Only You’, the title track from the latest release from Swedish band Soweco. Although of late it has been left to smooth jazz star Jonathan Fritzen to champion the musical cause of this corner of Scandinavia, Soweco (keyboard player Mattias Roos and drummer Peter Gustavsson) now look more than capable of sharing the load. Take for example ‘Only You’ which fused a west coast vibe with a soulful rare groove in a way that was simply splendid.

Read on for the remainder of this years top twenty and if you have your own list of favorites from 2014 why not e-mail it to me at denis.poole@yahoo.com. Happy New Year!!

December 23, 2015

2015 was a good year for Randy Scott. His latest CD, ‘Serenity’, garnered the hit single ‘Cabo’ and provided the sort of exposure that this most talented of saxophonists has long deserved. Of course those already familiar with Scott will need no reminding that his music is firmly rooted in the ever-buoyant Detroit scene and the latest track to be serviced to radio, the wonderfully brass enriched ‘Potion #9’, has a motor city vibe running right through it.

December 21, 2015

The seminal ‘88 Ways To Love’, written and performed by Marcus Johnson from his 1998 album ‘Chocolate City Groove’ is, in terms of smooth jazz cool, just about as good as it gets. Washington DC based Johnson is well known for incorporating the rhythms of rap with the soul of R&B yet although ‘Chocolate City Groove’ features nice side work from guitarist Stan Cooper and sax men Marshall Keys and Bryan Mills on‘88 Ways To Love’ he very much goes it alone. In fact his multiple keyboard programming achieves an easy dance groove that he proceeds to overlay with excellent smooth jazz piano.

This ‘rainy day’ mix is slightly more jazzy that the CD original but is nevertheless top notch.

It’s a wonderful example of smooth jazz and can also be found on the Jazz FM compilation ‘Pacific Coast Highway’.

December 19, 2015

Ahead of the CD ‘Connected’ by keyboard player Mark Etheredge, that will hit the streets on February 26, 2016, comes the easy grooving title cut that is sure to whet the appetite and then some. It features two-time GRAMMY® winner Paul Brown (who also produces throughout) plus rock solid backing from drummer Gorden Campbell, everyone’s favorite bass player Roberto Vally and percussionist Richie Garcia that collectively set the stage for something rather special. Elsewhere on the album a horn section of sax-man Greg Vail and trumpeter Lee Thornburg adds some edge while other featured performances comes from Chuck Loeb and Andy Suzuki.

December 17, 2015

The 2010 CD from Chicago guitar man Bernard Alcorn was titled ‘A New Day’ and with a combination of original songs and several well-crafted covers, it showed off his ‘Benson-esque’ talents to perfection. He followed that up in 2014 with ‘Stay Tuned’, a recording which conformed to a similar format and found him mixing nine of his own compositions with three re-imagined classics. Now, it being that very special time of the year, Bernard has released the totally pleasing EP, ‘Holiday Grooves’.

December 15, 2015

Now for a good news story at Christmas. Saxofonista extraordinaire Jessy J is getting married. Husband to be David Margolis proposed to her on December 6, 2015 while riding the Ferris wheel at the Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles, Ca. The two are planning their wedding for 2016.

Having recently returned home from sold out shows at London’s Pizza Express, Jessy is preparing to release her sixth solo album in the fall of 2016. As well as tour dates already ‘inked in’ for New Mexico, California and Europe she will be celebrating her engagement at the upcoming Valentine’s Day concerts at Spaghettini in Seal Beach, Ca.

December 13, 2015

The DeBarge - Garrett - Jones - Temperton composition ‘Secret Garden’ was featured on the 1989 milestone recording from Quincy Jones whose career had, at the time, already spanned four decades. Indeed he was universally recognised as a writing, performing and producing legend who will probably be best remembered as the guiding light behind the greatest work of Michael Jackson. This was the year that Jones made his debut on his own label and, despite the fact that eight years had passed since the release of his critically acclaimed ‘The Dude’ (on A&M) his new album, ‘Back On The Block’ proved to be his most extravagant, most star-studded and most brilliantly sequenced pop album to date.

December 11, 2015

Back in February of this year I was among the first to bring the news that Swedish contemporary jazz collective Soweco was all set to release its sophomore album, ‘Only You’. It is a collection that fuses a decidedly west coast vibe with a soulful rare groove and is a stunning follow up to ‘Don’t Hide Your Love’ that hit the streets in 2012, a year after Soweco was formed by keyboard player Mattias Roos and drummer Peter Gustavsson.

The CD includes wonderful tunes such as ‘Soul Searching’, ‘Friday Night’ and also the delicious title track where Roos and Gustavsson maintain a sensational groove while vocals from Frosche Lindgren are top notch.

December 09, 2015

Sax-man and keyboard player Judah Sealy is not only a music teacher at Destiny Christian School and Music Director at Church Of Love Faith Center in Rochester, up-state New York but also, following the release of his debut album ‘The Arrival’, a recording artist of some promise.

Take for example this track from the CD, ‘Nightime’, that has instrumental quiet storm written all over it. Good tune.

December 07, 2015

San Diego native Mariea Antoinette is perhaps best known for her dual talents as principle harpist in the Southeast Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra and an integral part of the all star touring female jazz soul group Jazz In Pink. With a style that is both contemporary and urban, Mariea is certainly the real smooth jazz deal yet her 2015 Christmas single ‘Gloria’ shows just how magical festive music can be when played on an instrument as melodic as the harp.

December 05, 2015

Over the past two years, and from time to time, I have been delighted to plunder wonderful tracks from the CD ‘Soulfisticated’ by funky flautist Jef Kearns. Jef constantly dispels the myth that flute players can’t do urban jazz and a fine example of this is the stunning ‘Through The Rain’ with featured vocals from Aria Zenua.

December 03, 2015

Already described in these pages as “being possibly the smooth jazz find of 2010” sax player Michael J Thomas burst onto the scene in that year with his debut CD, ‘City Beat’. This tremendously accomplished piece of work proved to be a collection with real commercial appeal and when, a year later, he came roaring back with the hit single ‘Think About Amy’ he demonstrated that here was a musician with the ability to blend the best elements of contemporary jazz and R&B with more pop orientated flavorings.

Since then Michael has been somewhat quiet but in 2016 that is all set to change with the release of ‘Driven’, an album of all original compositions that includes smooth jazz instrumentals such as ‘The Thirteenth Floor’ and ‘In America You Can Do It’ featuring Gino Rosaria plus the delightful the vocal track ‘My Love’.

Check back here soon for more news on Michael J Thomas.Michael J Thomas Gears Up For Driven In 2016

December 01, 2015

Konstantin Klashtorni first came to prominence in 2004 with his debut CD ‘Downtown’ and although three more smooth jazz albums followed, it was in 2010, when his project ‘Kool & Klean Volume l’ was released, that he began to move in a slightly different musical direction. Intended as the first in a series of accessible and commercially attractive collections that sat somewhere between smooth jazz, electronica and chill, what the CD actually did was to reclaim some of the ground which previously had been the sole domain of Paul Hardcastle. The year 2011 beckoned in the arrival of ‘Kool & Klean Volume ll’ on which the sumptuous ‘Reality’ can be found.